The USAID-funded Tax Reform Project held Wednesday, May 7, a public presentation of the results of the Taxpayers’ Perception Survey 2013.

Conducted by the Caucasus Research Resource Center (CRRC) Armenia between September and December 2013, the survey targeted 1,448 households, 400 taxpayer organizations and individual entrepreneurs in all regions of Armenia. The goal of the initiative was to create a baseline assessment of public awareness of the tax system in Armenia, tax compliance, communication between the tax authorities and taxpayers, and the efficiency of the tax policy and services provided to citizens, reported the press office of the U.S. embassy in Yerevan.

Representatives of the Armenian government, the private sector, civil society organizations, international agencies, and independent researchers attended the presentation, which aimed to improve the general understanding of the tax system in Armenia and foster a productive discussion.

The Director of USAID/Armenia Karen Hilliard noted at the event that the benchmark survey would play an important role in promoting a public-private dialogue, enhancing mutual trust and public confidence in the tax system, and encouraging the culture of voluntary compliance to advance Armenia’s economic growth. “USAID will continue to assist Armenia in its efforts to improve the transparency and efficiency of the tax system. We hope the survey will be conducted annually to record the progress of the Armenian tax system over time and will support state authorities to introduce further improvements in the area of tax policy and tax administration,” she said.

CRRC Program Coordinator Lusine Zakaryan presented the main findings of the survey. A question-and-answer session then allowed the participants to discuss sector-related issues with Government officials.